A Hop and a Time Skip Away
by karategirl666
Summary: Dawn discovers her portal abilities never left her after she is jumped by a vampire and her blood rips open time beneath her very feat. Spike hearing her distress tries to save her and upon their fingers brushing Dawn finds herself in a time before spike was a vampire and long before she was even born. William/Dawn. Spike/Dawn Novella. Horror themes


AN: Hello so yes. I've been gone. For years. I got really sick. I'm still not one hundred percent okay… But my hair has grown back and I'm taking that as I sign that I'm getting well again. So I figured I should probably make good on some of the promises I've made to a few Emailers and upload. is a dying website. So over the next few months I will start transferring all my stories over to a new writing site.

If you have a writing site you prefer. Let me know in the reviews. I'm really trying to cater to my readers here because you all have been so sweet to wait such a long time for me to continue my writing.

Here's a nice little Dawn and Spike fic to hold you over as I get the other stories updated and in order. This will take some time to do. Thank you for your understanding and support through my illness these past few years. You guys rock.

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On to the story

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I sighed heavily as I watched Buffy and the Scooby gang parade out the magic box door. They had another mission to go on and had once again forgotten to ask me to help. I could understand why thought. I wasn't a witch like Willow. I wasn't an ex Chaos demon like Anya. I hadn't been a military man one Halloween night and retained all the military training a spell casted into my brain. I was in a sense useless, though I had been trying to be less angsty about it.

"What's got your knickers in a twist?" I scowled looking over her shoulder to see Spike cigarette dangling from my mouth.

"Buffy and the others just left." I said taking a book off a nearby shelf and heading to the front desk.

"Where?"

"She didn't call you?"

"I don't have a phone she could call me on Nibblet." I merely shrugged as I watched him flick a bic into his hand.

"You can't smoke that in here." His eyes darted to stare at me over the flam resting inches away from the unlit cigarette.

"Is the old man here?"

"No…"

"Good." He lit the cigarette with a smirk and I sighed. "You are in a mood." He said waltzing over.

"Don't you want to race off and catch up with Buffy? She's heading to the Morris Hills Cemetary. Possessed Relic I guess."

"You serious?" he asked.

"Yeah."

"Thanks for the tip off."

"Anytime." He turned to head off but instead made a full rotation to look to me.

"You need a walk home nibblet?" I smiled.

"Thanks for the hospital but I'm here for a late night. Lots of books to reshelf from the return box." I said bringing up the box for him to look at.

"You gonna wait up for your sister then?"

"Yeah. I'll be here when you guys get back. There's a cot in the back buffy set up incase it gets too late." He flicked his eyes over my shoulder to stare at the training room.

"Well… I'll see you when you get back then. Don't go trying to walk home if you get sick of waiting."

"I won't." I said.

"Dawn I mean it." he pointed with his cigarettes. "You're a ripe lil' peach any monster would love to sink his teeth into." I quirked an eyebrow. "Don't look at me like that." I snorted as he turned walking away. "See you when I get back."

"See you." I looked to a mirror hanging on the wall beside the cash register as I heard the bell above the door give a ring with Spikes leave. "A ripe lil peach…" I repeated in a mock accent as I titled my head back to look over my bare neck. My eyes drifted up from my neck to stare at my face and I found my nose crinkling in an unimpressed fashion. I didn't even find myself attractive how would some vampire. They'd munch me for my blood not my looks as Spike suggested. I looked Alien to myself. My eyes were large and took up too much of my face. I looked away from my reflection before I could further degrade myself with ill opinions. I took each book out from the return box and smiled.

"I've been waiting for you three…" I grabbed my bag out from under the front desk and stuffed the books in quickly before pulling the rental book out and marking them as returned and checked out once more. I didn't put my name down of course. Instead I put the pseudonym I had set up with Anya. She was the only one who knew I was checking books out. I paid her under the table for the rental fee and in return was allowed to take any book out of the return box I wanted even dark magic texts.

I had been secretly reading everything I could on magic and demonology for the past year and a half. In the last six months I had begun practicing magic and engaging in potion work. My sister may have thought I didn't have much use, but when she eventually did I was going to prove my weight. I wanted to Show Buffy that I could be more than the shop lifting little sister who needed saving all the time.

I closed my backpack pulling a vile from my bag as I did. I opened the vessel up and set the opening against my neck rubbing the oil inside over my carotid arteries. I had stumbled upon a vampire deterrent in an old nuns journal a year ago. Since using it Buffy hadn't had to save me from Vampires once. It was the first potion I had ever whipped together I had been proud to find it flawless. As I slung my bag over my shoulder I tucked the vile into my pocket.

As I walked through the shop I turned off every light and righted every statue. I liked to leave a tidy shop for Giles to open in the morning. I wasn't waiting up for my sister. I hadn't in months. She was under the impression I would call a cab and for a safe ride home. I never had, and I never would. It was a waste of money, and I was saving for a trip abroad with Giles in the summer. He was taking me on a trip to a historical book auction. Giles hadn't noticed me taking the books from the rental bin, but he had noticed how much I cared for the books in the return bin and elsewhere. He thought I had a future in antique book sales, and I agreed.

As I walked by a shelf I dipped back seeing a book I had wanted to read was back in its place. I Smiled flipping it into my hand before skipping back to the rental book and scribbling one more takeaway down. As I flipped open the book I headed to the front door and took my leave. I blindly locked the door as I did every night and without looking headed down the sidewalk in the direction of my house.

I didn't feel bad about telling spike I was waiting for him and the others to walk home. Not when he had long stopped showing up at the shop to walk me home. It had made me sad the first week he never showed up, but it had been nice to have the walk with my sister. It only had lasted a few weeks though and then she asked me to call a cab as she and the others went on a mission. I instead made the vampire deterrent and walked home myself.

I glanced up from my book to see the street empty as I walked by a closing coffee bean. I smiled at the shop girl inside and she nodded my way. As I glanced down at my book I wondered if she would make it home. It seemed there was a new girl working the night shift at the coffee been every night, and I never saw her again during the day. I would eventually see her on the wall of the shop as a missing person poster. I gave a shudder as I glanced up from my book again and rounded the corner off of Main St.

I heard laughter in the distance and shrugged glancing back down at my book as one of my hands reached down from the text to reach into my jacket and clutch onto the miniature crossbow that lay strapped to my side. It had been my eighteenth birthday gift from Giles and Buffy. They had each taken turns teaching me how to aim and fire it, I had become quite the shot under their toutalidge; though I was no slayer of course.

I heard a scream and came to a stop my hand gripping onto the handle of the crossbow. I was jumpier than I had been in sometime on a walk home alone. But I had never heard a scream like that on a walk home. I watched as a young woman raced out from an alley a head to get chased down by three vampires. I pushed myself against the wall and hid as I watched the girl disappear down the adjacent road. She was a goner for sure, though I hoped my sister may be able to save her. I knew better than to try myself. I like every other young woman in Sunnydale would keep my head down and try to get home uneaten. I wasn't a slayer, just a teen girl with a vampire deterrent potion in her pocket.

As I moved to continue my walk I gasped seeing another vampire dart from the alley. My startled sound made him stop and look in my direction. My eyes grew wide as he flashed a toothy smile my way. As I took a step back he lunged forward. His speed was insane was I retrieved my crossbow and fired. The arrow slammed into his shoulder and he roared in anger as he continued his advancement. I swung my crossbow at him not having time to place another bolt inside. The vamp pulled the weapon easily from my hand and struck me across the head with it. I was knocked to the ground instantly as he took a hold of the back of my jacket and threw me against the side of a building.

"Time to dine." He said mouth diving for my neck. I smiled as he hissed in response to the but gasped when his teeth sunk into my neck.

"No!" My hands beat against his chest and he reeled back sputtering and spitting my blood from hi smooth onto the ground. As the liquid hit the street I watched as it lit up. The vamp stared at the illuminated blood before looking to me.

"What are you?" he asked my eyes grew wide as he wipe glowing blood from his mouth. "You taste like shit what are you?" he asked gripping onto my shirt. I reached into my pocket pulling my vampire deterrent. "What are you!?" He shook me and I slammed the glass vile into his face. he screamed in response wiping at the glass and potion as I took off running.

I felt something warm on my shoulder and looked down to see my shirt stained in the glowing substance. My hands slid up my bloodied shirt to grip at my neck. I felt my blood run through my fingers and looked down to see it was dripping onto the street, leaving little glowing puddles in my wake as I ran.

"Nibblet!" I turned to see Spike running towards me. I let go of my neck and felt my blood race down my neck and felt myself fall back. "Dawn!" I heard Spike roar as I splashed down into sea of illuminated plasma. "Dawn!" I stared up to see Spikes hand reaching through this pool of light. "Dawn take my hand." As my fingers brushed against his I felt myself get violently tugged from his grasp.

"Spike!" My head cracked against the ground and I heard startled gasps as my hands dove into my hair in pain.

"Deary are you alright?" I heard an accented voice ask.

"What?" I whispered moving my head from side to side.

"She had a right wallop." Another voice added as I felt hands slip into my own and I was lifted into the air. As they tried to help me stand I felt a wave of nausea. Vomit spewed from my mouth and the women leapt away from me. Without their help I fell to the cold ground. "The twat knackered leave her in the gutter."

"Wait." I said reaching for one of their skirts as they walked over my legs.

"Leave us be we got coin to purse."

"What?" I asked I took a deep breath as I registered their odd dresses. They looked right out of an old Victorian film. I look around and my jaw clenched as I registered I laid not on asphalt but instead on cobble stone.

"What's this then?" I turned to see a young boy picking at my back pack. My eyebrow arched in fascination as I looked over his tattered tweed clothes. He looked right out of Oliver twists. "This yours?" he asked in a cockney accent.

"Where am I?" I asked standing and I stood straight as he picked my bag in hand.

"I'll tell you for was'ever in here." I snatched the bag from his hand. "You got quick hands love." He said as I strapped it to my back. "Those straps are smart, makes it harder to snatch."

"That's the idea."

"Now where am I."

"Boys…." My jaw clenched as I watched five boys of varying ages a few near my own stepped out of the shadows and alcoves over the street.

"What happened to you lass?" I looked to a bow with a curly red hair. "You got blood all over your frock."

"What a little frock it is." Another boy added. I looked down at the blue silk sun dress I was wearing under my sisters cropped leather coat.

"Get her boys." As I heard the order I turned and burst into my quickest run. I could hear the hells of their boots click against the cobblestone as they made chase. I glanced over my shoulder and watched one of the boys slip in a puddle I had easily run through and I thanked the goddess for the sneakers I had decided to wear that night.

"Goddess." I whispered as I glanced over my shoulder once more. "Goddess surround me in your light please protect me on this night." I whispered." I watched as sparks flew from a lantern lighting the alley and dropped onto one of the boys. I came to a stop as I watched in horror as his coat burst into flames. His friends stopped chasing me upon hearing the screams of their friend and turned to see him burning. I took a shuttered breath as his screams reached my ears and I became very aware of what my spell had caused.

"I can't think on it…" I whispered taking a step back as I turned and raced down the street. As I turned a corner I found myself standing in the middle of a road a horse racing past me.

"Oi miss look out!" I turned in time to see a carriage. I moved but not before a horse slammed into my shoulder knocking me violently to the ground.

"Good god!" I heard a gasp. I stared up to see the door of a carriage swinging open over my head. "We hit a woman mother!" I heard a voice which could only be described as a gentle man as I watched a blonde man leap from a carriage in a light blue suit. "Oh she's covered in blood…" I was pulled into the arms of a young man and I blinked as I stared up into his rather familiar face.

"Spike?" I whispered seeing his blue eyes staring into mine with concern as a woman with the same expression came to rest at his side.

"Oh dear me have we killed the poor girl."

"I think she's rather Alert."

"My dear what's your name?" The woman at spikes side asked.

"Where am I?" I asked spike. "Why are you dressed like this?"

"She's confused from the blow." Spike said and I shook my head as I watched him look me over. "This poor woman is barely clothes." He gasped as he tore off his jacket and threw it over my body.

"She looks to be a noble woman madam." The carriage driver commented as he looked me over. "Just a guess by them pearls in her ears and that pretty gem hanging around her neck." I looked at the diamond necklace Xander had bought me for my sixteenth birthday.

"For your sake I hope she isn't. Let's get her into the carriage and to our home." The carriage man lifted me into his arms and I was set into the carriage. I cried out as I was set down; feeling a pain spread through my shoulder.

"What hurts my dear?" the woman asked.

"My shoulder."

"I this it might be out of place." Spike noted as he climbed into the carriage. I hissed in pain as I felt the horses roughly take off across the cobblestone road.

"William give me your handkerchief I want to clean some of this blood away."

"Yes mother."

"Mother?" I asked thoroughly confused. "Where am I?" I asked feeling panicked.

"Dear it's going to be okay." The woman said.

"I don't know where I am and he won't act how he is." I said with a point.

"Mother is she mad?" Spike asked.

"No dear I think just concussed. I saw this in a laborer building our house when he was hit with a stack of bricks. A carriage is a far harder blow then a few bricks." He nodded.

"I'm sorry if I'm freaking you out…" I whispered to spike.

"Freaking?" he asked. "I'm afraid I don't understand the expression."

"Oh Jesus." I whispered falling back against the carriage.

"Now that one I know." He said with a kind smile and I laughed softly.

"We're here madame!" I jumped as a bang sounded atop the carriage from the driver hitting the roof with his hand. The door swung open and I was lifted out once more by the driver.

"I can walk." I said.

"Better not try dear." Spikes mother advised.

"Your spikes mother?" I whispered to myself.

"Oh no…" she turned from me. "William take the carriage and fetch the doctor."

"Yes mother." He said jumping into the carriage."

"He's what he would call Nancy." I whispered before I fell into darkness.


End file.
